Europe Overview



Europe Overview

6th largest continent

3rd most populated—732 million

Vatican City--Smallest country (.17 sq. mi; pop. 770)

European Union—association of 27 European countries – They function similar to the United States – common currency, Federal (European Union) laws and State (individual country) laws

Ural Mts.—separates Europe & Asia

Mediterranean Sea—separates Europe and Africa

Strait of Gibraltar—between Morocco and Spain

Great Britain

aka England or the United Kingdom

Includes: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

Iberian Peninsula—location of Spain & Portugal & Andorra

Istanbul – major city in Turkey; only city on 2 continents

Bosporus Strait—separates the Med. from the Black Sea – One of four natural borders between Europe and Asia – The other three are the Mediterranean Sea, Caucus Mountains and Ural Mountains.

Black Sea—located in SE Europe – Separates Ukraine & Russia (Eastern Europe) from Turkey (Asia).

Caucasus—one of the 2 mountains ranges separating Europe & Asia

Vatican City—smallest country in the world

Danube River—2nd longest river in Europe; 1,776 miles long

Volga River—longest river in Europe; 2,300 miles long

The Alpine Mountains include ranges in the Italian and Balkan peninsulas, northern Spain, and southern France. The region includes the mountains of the Alps, Pyrenees, Apennines, Dinaric Alps, Balkans, and Carpathians.

Mount Blanc—highest mountain in Europe????; 15774’ – Part of the French Alps

Matterhorn in the Alps

Mt. Elbrus—highest mountain (?); 18,510’—located in Russia – Part of the Caucasus Mountains

Pyrenees Mountains—between Spain and France – Cuts off Iberian Peninsula from mainland Europe

English Channel— very rough stretch of water between England and France

Chunnel-tunnel under the English Channel; 31 miles

Asia is the largest continent

It has the largest country (Russia) & the 3rd largest (China)

It has the first and second most populated countries (China & India)

It has the largest lake, highest mountain range, highest and lowest point in elevation, and the deepest lake in the world.

Has the largest dam and longest man-made water feature in the world.

Has the wettest place on earth—Mawsynramin, India (467”)

Himalaya Mountains—means “home of the snows”; tallest mt.range

Mount Everest—grows by 4 mm each year

aka Sagarmatha (Nepal) meaning “goddess of the sky”

aka Chomolungma (Tibet) meaning “Mother Goddess of the Universe”

Named after George Everest (1859) who called it Peak 15

Subcontinent of India—body of land slightly smaller than a continent that is actually a separate piece of land

K2—Mount Godwin Austin/Qojir

(“the great mountain”)

28,250’

First summit was in 1954

1 in 3 will die going up

Mount Fujiyama means “great mountain”

Highest mountain in Japan--Last erupted in 1978

Ural mountains divide Europe and Asia

Hindu Kush Mountains—Between Afghanistan and Pakistan; means “death”

Khyber Pass in the Hindu Kush

Yangtze River

Longest river in Asia & third longest in the world

aka the Chang River

3964 miles long

means “son of the great water”

Three Gorges Dam—world’s longest dam; in China along the Yangtze

7661 feet wide; 32 turbines; cost $39 billion

Huang He or Yellow River in northern China

3395 miles long

“River of Sorrow”—1931 flood killed 3.7 million people

Gets its color from the loess or yellowish brown soil

Tigris and Euphrates Rivers: main rivers in Iraq

(1180/1700 mi. long)

Means “Arrow” and “Sweetwater”

Ganges River—most holy river for Hindus

Indus River—main river in Pakistan

1800 miles long

Thar Desert—desert in NW India

Brahmaputra River—1800 mi. long; means “offspring of Brahma”

East and West Ghats mountain range in southern India

Three bodies of water surrounding India are: Arabian Sea—to the west of India

Bay of Bengal—to the east of India

Indian Ocean

Dead Sea—lowest spot on land

1300’ below sea level; between Israel & Jordan

Caspian Sea—largest lake in the world

Aral Sea—lake that is shrinking because it was diverted for irrigation of Soviet agricultural projects

Lake Baikal—deepest in the world; 5315’ deep

Thar Desert—desert in NW India

comes from the word “thul” meaning sand ridge

Gobi Desert—in Mongolia (Northern China); largest cold winter desert

Kashmir

disputed area that India and Pakistan have fought over

Indonesia—country with the most Muslims

Moscow—capitol of Russia; center is the Kremlin (a fort)

Jerusalem—capitol of Israel; holiest city for Jews and Christians

Tokyo—capitol of Japan; largest urban area on earth – Best Example of Urban Sprawl (the spread of urban areas).

Mecca—holiest city for Muslims; located in Saudi Arabia

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